Do you feel like you’re on Fire every day (part 1)
obedience has a cost
2/8/2026
Hello friends,
I shared something unbiblical last week. I think that shows how important it is to submit to the teaching of your local church. Not just well meaning people online...ehm ehm.. exhibit A ‘me.’
And I really need to correct myself. Your testimony is powerful. Other people’s testimonies are powerful. What I wanted to highlight is the power of the Lamb, His sacrifice is also powerful.
In different seasons, one part may jump at you more than the other when you read your Bible. But both work for us to overcome.
[They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. Rev. 12:11]
This is a four part series, leading to my 27th birthday on February 27th. Part one was on how obedience has a temporary cost but His plans are always better. And that you can find joy in the wait.
Fire is the symbolism carrying this series forward really. I like symbolisms, hyperboles, and metaphors a lot. As a writer, I’m always balancing grabbing your attention without them becoming a distraction—the star of the show, instead of a vehicle to get the message across.
So lately, I’ve been learning about framing—like using a frame as a foundation and build on that. Because I just realized I didn’t frame the Fire series at all last week. 🫣 So we’re working a little backwards here. Because I’ll be framing the series a little more in part 2.
xoxo,
Lynn.
I have this thing that I always say when I find myself in a hard season, in a season of waiting. I say that I want my life to be on fire, but at the same time, that I would have a joy that doesn’t make sense. A joy that exists even while everything around me is in flames. And the thing is I've never thought about it this way before. I never connected that phrase to the story of the furnace. I never thought about the men who were thrown into the fire and somehow had this unshakable conviction that they were not alone in it. But that’s the image that keeps coming back to me now—that somehow, in the middle of the fire, they knew there was a fourth man standing with them. And I think that’s the full picture for me. There’s one thing I’m waiting on. One prayer I’ve prayed that hasn’t come to fruition yet. And this waiting has taken me to some really dark places. I never share things that are still this fresh—things that are only a few weeks old—but I felt like God gave me permission to speak from here to you now. Not later. Not once I have the testimony. I cried in January. If we’ve never met, this is not normal for me. I’m usually smiling all the time—mostly. Not because I don’t have problems. But because I believe God is so loving, so good, and faithful. That day I had tears because I never knew obedience could be this costly. Over a year ago, I felt called not to leave Miami. That was never part of the plan I had for my life. In fact, it stood completely apart from it. I had made a plan— and then God set it on fire. Literally. I listened. I stayed. And being in that in-between space—being obedient while still not seeing anything change has been one of the hardest things. Because I could take myself out of this season, but why should my voice be louder than His? And a couple of weeks ago, I felt Him say something that gave me comfort and my joy back: You want the blessing, but My goal isn’t the blessing. I have glory in mind. And that stopped me. Because I realized how often we're just looking at the next step, the next thing we need to receive to feel okay again. But He sees a bigger picture than we ever could. When I think about joy now, I think about lightness. About that quiet assurance that somehow, even here, you will be okay. Not because everything is what you want. But because there's joy waiting for you in His presence. It’s not even about resting in what He’s done for you in the past, or what He’s done for other people. No. It’s about gazing at Him as He is. About sitting long enough to look at the holes in His hands. So who you are becoming in the waiting—in the middle, in the disappointments—that person matters to Him so much. That person is who He’s trying to bring into the light. To introduce you to her. To him. And sometimes the only way to meet that version of yourself is through obedience. Obedience when things feel still. Obedience when the voices around you say it doesn’t make sense. Obedience when it doesn’t look like your plan. I’m sharing this because sometimes hearing testimonies only from the other side can encourage us to keep going. But at the same time, I think we can fall into a trap, because we only speak from the mountain tops: We’re like, oh, I was in this, I was in that, and then God showed up, He did this, He did that, and then my situation became completely different. I got the thing. And all of this is powerful, for sure. Yes. But it can get so easy for us to focus only on the blessing on what we got at the end, and not the process. I think that right here there is joy. Right here in the middle. Even if you don’t get the thing—He’s still good. You can dry those tears because joy can be yours here too. Right now. In the middle of the fire. If you’re tired, lift your head. If you don’t know what to pray, picture yourself sitting at His feet. Let yourself believe that He’s holding you there. There is just so much more He has in store for you. But glory— glory is what He has in mind.
Heart Call:
Obedience will cost you your plans. But He wants you to keep your gaze fixed on Him not just on the thing you want.
What is pressing on your joy right now?
How can you gently return your gaze to Jesus—who He is—while you walk through the middle of it?
And remember that you’re not alone, friends.
Do you have one spiritual mentor and some trusted sisters who can specifically partner with you in prayer?
Photo Credits: Caique Nascimento
So Beautiful